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They Said It

Dec. 11, 2003

Random quotes from around the league

Thursday, Dec. 11, 2003

Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan on fired Falcons head coach Dan Reeves, with whom he has not always seen eye-to-eye: “Obviously, they did not have the type of season that they wanted. I have to take my hat off to a guy that has won over 200 football games in this business. To last as long as he has and to have been in as many Super Bowls as he has is really a credit to what he is about.”

Broncos QB Jake Plummer on his team’s need to take care of business vs. bruised and battered Cleveland on Sunday, something it didn’t do vs. Chicago Week 12: “We're more into a must-win situation now than when the Bears came to town. We know what we have to do now and we can't afford to let down in any way. These guys are determined, and veteran leaders will make sure that doesn't happen.”

Cardinals QB Jeff Blake on young backup Josh McCown, who figures to see lots of blitzes when he starts vs. Carolina Sunday: “If they blitzed me as much as they did, they're really going to blitz him. He's got to get the ball out of his hands quick and know exactly where the blitz is coming from so he doesn't get hit in the back of the head.”

Vikings defensive coordinator George O’Leary, now also the head coach at Central Florida, on wanting to stay with the Vikings until season’s end: “As I said to the players, obviously I ... took another job, but I'm going to fulfill my commitment here because I think that's what you should do.”

Titans QB Steve McNair, who has suffered two leg injuries in recent weeks, on playing hurt: “I've been playing with pain for a long time, and it's just second nature to what I do. I go week in and week out to try to get my team to win, and I just feel like as a quarterback, being a leader, you have to go out and help your team go to war and put them in the best position to win.”

Redskins DE Bruce Smith on his relief that he finally broke the all-time sack record: “It certainly takes a load off of my back, as well as some of my teammates'. Week in, week out, day in, day out, being asked about the record did get a little tiring. People meant well, but my energy was always focused on winning the ballgame."

Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2003

Falcons head coach Dan Reeves, fired on Tuesday by team owner Arthur Blank, on his decision to leave now as opposed to the end of the season: “When Arthur told me he had made the decision about the end of the year, I knew it had to come to a fullness today. I’m an eternal optimist, so yeah, it was a surprise. But I'm also realistic enough about coaching to understand this is how it is in the NFL."

Blank on why he fired Reeves, who led the Falcons to a 3-10 record this season but was without star QB Michael Vick for the first 12 games: “I want to be clear that this decision is not being made based on our performance this season — we're looking forward, not back. This is purely about the future of the organization.”

Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren on his team, which is 8-5 but has a dismal 1-5 road record and has to play two of its last three games on the road as it fights for a playoff spot: “You get into the playoffs because you deserve to be there. Our record is 8-5. We're within reach of some of our preseason goals. I think we can do this. I really believe we can do this.”

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on QB Quincy Carter, who has struggled in recent weeks: "As we sit right here today, I have no reason to believe that he won't continue to improve, learn from his mistakes. He's at the stage of his development where he will do that. ... I am in good shape with what Quincy can do for the Cowboys for years to come."

Steelers head coach Jerome Bettis on his belief that the team has not lost faith in head coach Bill Cowher: “Look at the team we just played (Oakland), when the players don't believe the philosophy that the head coach has, then you are going to have issues. It's obvious, you can hear it in the comments that are made. Everybody believes in our coach and what he has implemented and the system. That has not been an issue.”

Texans head coach Dom Capers, his team decimated by injuries, on what its mentality will be down the stretch: “We're not going to just write this off to see a bunch of young guys play. We're going to try to win games. The first priority is to try to win these last three football games and the more we can get a look at guys we think can be part of our plans next year, then that much the better."

Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2003

Giants DE Michael Strahan on the technique Redskins DE Bruce Smith needed to break the all-time career sack record: “He’s leaning like a good set of Pirelli tires. And Bruce is smart. He knows how to pass rush. There’s an art to it. He’s definitely one of the Picassos of pass rushing.”

Jets head coach Herm Edwards on the idea that there is nothing to play for now that his team is nearly eliminated from the playoff race: “I’m just in the belief if it doesn’t mean anything, they should just cancel the season. They’re not going to do that. That’s ridiculous to even think that way. Our team has to understand that we don’t buy into that. We buy into preparing to win.”

Raiders QB Rick Mirer on the condition of his left ankle, which he injured in Sunday’s 27-7 loss to Pittsburgh: “I’m not feeling all that bad. I’ve been lucky with ankles over the years. I’ve never had one blow up on me. I think it will be all right. I’ll work with it through the week. … I’m probably feeling better than I imagined or anyone imagined.”

Panthers S Mike Minter on the play of Falcons QB Michael Vick in Sunday’s 20-14 overtime loss to Atlanta: “Hey, it was like Pop Warner football. He rolls out and then starts running around. What can you do about that?”

Raiders CB Terrance Shaw on Steelers WR Hines Ward’s comments that the Raiders have given up on the season: “You can’t pay attention to what other people say, unless they’re on the field. You got a family, don’t you? You know how many other teams there are in the league. Film don’t lie. You can tell who’s quitting. That’s the answer to Hines Ward’s theory. There ain’t no quitting.”

Chargers head coach Marty Schottenheimer on whether he would be benching QB Doug Flutie to give backup Drew Brees more of a chance to develop this season: “Benching him, is that what you call it? Well, yeah, I’d have to say that I’m considering it, yeah. … If indeed I make the decision to change, it won’t be a reflection on Doug. But our purpose at the outset was to give Drew Brees an opportunity to step back from the midst of it and see it from a different perspective. We’ll wait and see how the week unfolds.”

Monday, Dec. 8, 2003

Redskins DE Bruce Smith, who wore a burgundy robe with the inscription “All-Time” on the front, on sacking Giants QB Jesse Palmer for his NFL-record 199th sack in a 20-7 victory over New York that snapped Washington’s three-game losing streak. “I don't know what to feel like. I have been playing this game a long time. I've had a lot of surgeries. A lot of very important people were instrumental in prolonging my career.”

Dolphins DE Adewale Ogunleye on the 11-2 Patriots, who won their ninth consecutive game, clinched the AFC East title and tied Kansas City for the NFL's best record in a 12-0 victory against Miami that was played in blizzard-like conditions: "It didn't matter — snow, mud, blood, who cares. It doesn't affect blocking and tackling. They just did it better."

Falcons QB Michael Vick, who rushed for 141 yards in his first start of the season, on leading the Falcons to a 20-14 overtime victory over the 8-5 Panthers: “It was a blast to be back out there. It feels like we won the Super Bowl."

Titans WR Eddie Berlin, returning kicks for the first time this season, on fumbling twice on kickoff returns in a 29-27 loss to the 10-3 Colts that will likely cost 9-4 Tennessee the AFC South title. “It was really a nightmare. I was trying to make a play so badly out there and get a chance at some returns.”

Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan on RB Clinton Portis, who ran for 218 yards and scored a team-record five touchdowns in a 45-27 victory over Kansas City to help 8-5 Denver stay in the playoff race: “I kind of expect it, because every time he touches the ball he's got a chance to go the distance, He has made so many big plays and it seems like he gets stronger as the game goes on.”

Ravens LB Ray Lewis, who had an interception and nine tackles, on his team's 31-13 win over the Bengals, which moved 8-5 Baltimore a game ahead of 7-6 Cincinnati in the AFC North: “This is a statement game for us in our division, We did what we need to do. We're hard to beat when (RB) Jamal (Lewis)'s running the ball like that and our offense capitalizes on the turnovers we get.”

Packers defensive coordinator Ed Donatell on Packers CB Mike McKenzie who made amends after getting burned by WR Marty Booker on a 61-yard TD reception by returning an interception 90 yards for a touchdown in Green Bay’s 34-21 victory vs. Chicago: “Mike has a short memory, and I love that to the dickens.”

Buccaneers DT Warren Sapp, who caught the game-winning TD pass, on the 6-7 defending Super Bowl champion Buccaneers, who still cling to fleeting playoff hopes after a 14-7 win, against the Saints, a team that had beaten Tampa Bay three consecutive times. “This was self-evaluation time. You have to look in the mirror. We had to have this one. This team's just owned us."

Eagles QB Donovan McNabb beating the Cowboys 36-10 to give 10-3 Philadelphia the NFC’s best record following an 0-2 start: “Even though things were shaky, it was no time for panicking. What you saw today was a team that wanted to defend its territory and move on.”

Texans TE Billy Miller on the Jaguars' defense, which held a Houston team without injured QB David Carr and injured RB Domanick Davis, to 124 total yards in a 27-0 Jacksonville victory: “That was, by far, the most physical defense I've ever played against, seen or heard of. I don't know what the head coach told those boys, but from the first game to this game, I think they went out and got 11 new guys on defense. I've never seen such a transformation.”

49ers LB Julian Peterson on the poor play of the Cardinals, a team that beat San Francisco 16-13 in Week Eight, in the Niners' dominating 50-14 win Sunday: “I don't know what their situation was, but they didn't come out with the same intensity that they had when we played them down there.”

[Canadian Hog]

yup, your energy was focussed on winning ballgames Bruce, I agree.............your own ballgames that is. Get the hell out of here.

[codeorama]

Originally posted by Demoralized Canadian Hog

yup, your energy was focussed on winning ballgames Bruce, I agree.............your own ballgames that is. Get the hell out of here.

Exactly... :moon: See Ya Bruce.